East Hampton Student Has Meningitis

EAST HAMPTON — An East Hampton Middle School student has been hospitalized and diagnosed with meningitis, a school official stated in a letter to parents this week.

The unidentified student was hospitalized Wednesday, said Kevin M. Reich, assistant superintendent of schools. The child is not suspected of having the type of meningitis that requires those who have had close contact with the student to be treated with antibiotics, he said.

The child's illness is not related to the multi-state outbreak of meningitis that has killed more than a dozen people, he said.

Anyone with questions should contact their physicians, Reich said. His letter includes a fact sheet about the illness.

In a statement to the media, Laurie Gonzalez, director of special education and pupil personnel services, said the school system contacted the local health department to get information about the illness as soon as it learned of the diagnosis.

The custodial staff thoroughly cleaned hard surfaces and any other surface where hand-to-hand contact has been made.

She said the school system received a call about the student's diagnosis on Wednesday.